A Hippogriff's Mate
by Ex Mentis
Summary: Because I wanted to be the first to do this pairing. Harry never expected his first Care of Magical Creatures class to be quite this eventful. Now he's the mate of a certain hippogriff! Human-Animagus!Buckbeak/Harry. Currently a one-shot, may eventually continue.
1. Chapter 1

Harry woke the morning of Thursday, September 2nd 1993 to a deep and exhilarating sense that something incredible and life-changing was going to happen. For the life of him he couldn't say what it would be, or why he even felt this way in the first place, only that he felt it at all. So, he greeted the day with a smile and a child-like giddiness as he looked forward to whatever was going to happen that day.

The day started similar to the day before, with Harry coming downstairs to the Gryffindor common room to find Ron and Hermione at it again over Crookshanks. Honestly, Harry thought to himself, couldn't they at least _try_ to get along? After the trio supplied each other with a "Good morning!" they made their way to the Great Hall for breakfast and the receiving of their time tables. Following breakfast was a tiring ascent of the North Tower to Divination, guided by the single most mental portrait Harry had yet to encounter, where the mysterious and, perhaps, equally mental professor foretold Harry's death. Fearing that this was the incredible and life-changing thing that was going to happen today, Harry's mood darkened to a somber miasma of ennui. This resulted in Professor McGonagall's display of her own animagus transformation to fall on depressed eyes. The Scott's declaration that if Harry should die he need not hand in his homework brought a grin to his face (and if Harry was not mistaken, even McGonagall looked quite amused and pleased with herself).

Lunch became a light affair with Harry's mood lifted and his mind set on something far greater still waiting to happen to him today, which lasted even as he and his friends made their way down to Hagrid's hut for their first Care of Magical Creatures class.

Let it never be said that Harry James Potter thought ill of Rubeus Hagrid, but truth be told the man had a nasty penchant for underestimating the danger of magical creatures; Fluffy and Aragog being exhibits A and B, respectively. And given the nature of their "text book", Harry's fears had yet to be abated.

When Hagrid returned from within the Dark Forest, Harry was awe-struck by the dozen creatures the half-giant had shepherded into the paddock. They had the bodies, hind legs, and tails of horses, but the front legs, wings, and heads of what seemed to be giant eagles, with cruel, steel-colored beaks and large, brilliantly orange eyes. The talons on their front legs were half a foot long and deadly looking. Each of the beasts had a thick leather collar around its neck, which was attached to a long chain, and the ends of all of these were held in the vast hands of Hagrid.

"Hippogriffs!" Hagrid roared happily, waving a hand at them. "Beau'iful, aren't they?"

And if Harry were being truly honest with himself, they were at that. They held themselves with such grace and pride, Harry felt as if they could be the royalty of the Dark Forest; kings and queens, each of them. And their eyes…so sharp and focused. One would be foolish to not think them clever.

Feeling oddly drawn to them, Harry slowly stepped forward from the mass of students that, simultaneously, were slowly backing away. Noticing this, Hagrid began to lecture, "Fir's thing yeh gotta know abou' hippogriffs is, they're proud. Easily offended, hippogriffs are. Don't never insult one, 'cause it might be the last thing yeh do."

Harry continued to step forward, for some reason he couldn't explain, zeroing in on one hippogriff in particular. As if sensing his presence, the hippogriff in question looked up and towards Harry, meeting his eyes with its own. Harry gasped as he felt a shock go through his mind and body, to the very depths of his soul. At that moment, he couldn't have looked away from this hippogriff if he'd wanted to.

By now, only 12' of space separated them, and Harry was now sure, without a doubt, that _this_ was the moment he'd been waiting for since he'd woken up. Whatever happened next was sure to change his life forever.

"Yeh always wait fer the hippogriff ter make the firs' move," Hagrid continued on, watching in interest as Harry and Buckbeak (his favorite of the lot, of course) neared each other. "It's polite, see? Yeh walk toward him, and yeh b…" Hagrid froze as he witnessed something absolutely extraordinary.

Buckbeak bowed to Harry _first_!

Time stood still for Harry as everything outside of him and the hippogriff known as Buckbeak dissolved into nothingness. This single moment was so absolutely surreal that the young wizard couldn't bother doing anything but playing along. So, without really even thinking of the consequences, Harry Potter bowed back. This was apparently the right choice as Buckbeak quickly bolted over to Harry and began to nuzzle him. Harry gasped as he felt something finally click into place in his heart, latching his arms around the Hippogriffs neck. He never wanted to leave this peculiar embrace.

And then Harry noted something odd. While before he could clearly feel feathers upon his arms, now he could feel bare human skin. And where before there had been a neck the size of a modest tree trunk, there was now a slimmer, but still strong neck. Last of all, where there had been a large beak nibbling playfully at his ear, now there were a pair of human lips whispering a single word into his ear.

"Mate."

Harry's knees buckled at the sound of that husky voice; young, confident, proud, and commanding. Before he could even think of falling, though, a pair of strong human arms wrapped around his waist and held him steady as a playful chuckle rumbled through a broad bare chest. Gathering his Gryffindor courage, Harry pulled away ever so slightly and looked up: his breath catching in his throat at the sight that awaited him.

The man that was once a hippogriff looked to be no older than 20, by Harry's estimation. He had silvery hair the color of the feathers he'd once had reaching down just past his shoulders. His eyes looked no different now than they had before, though his irises were circles rather than sickles. His chin and cheeks had a similar pointed and aristocratic property to Malfoy and his father.

In a word, Buckbeak was gorgeous.

He was also quite naked.

Harry squeaked in embarrassment as he jumped back and turned away, quickly shedding his outer robes and handing them to the newly human hippogriff who chuckled as he took them and fashioned a loin-cloth out of them.

"C-Class dismissed!" Hagrid roared before he, followed closely by Ron and Hermione all but ran over to Harry and the hippogriff. All three stopped short when they witnessed Buckbeak move between them and Harry. It took Hagrid less than a second to understand and to bow before the former hippogriff. Hermione and Ron quickly followed suit.

A moment they waited, but finally Buckbeak bowed in return and moved back to his previous position behind Harry.

"Buckbeak? Is tha' you?" Hagrid asked, still surprised by what he had seen.

Buckbeak smiled and nodded his head. "Yes."

"We…we should probably go to Professor Dumbledore," Hermione supplied. "He might know how or why this happened."

"The how is magic. The why is he is my mate," Buckbeak answered, as if this should be quite obvious.

Finally regaining his voice, Harry said, "I'd actually feel better talking to Dumbledore. He may have knowledge, from a wizarding perspective, about how…this…happened."

Looking down upon the shy and blushing face of his mate, Buckbeak smile and bowed his head in acquiescence before following him out of the edge of the forest.

As they walked up to the castle, Hagrid quickly grabbed his massive coat from his hut and handed it to Buckbeak to further protect his modesty. With its massive size, the hem dragged a bit on the ground and the sleeves hung far past the former hippogriffs finger tips. However, it seemed to make it easier for Harry to look upon him, and that was enough of a reason to wear the heavy cloth.

By the time the group of five made it to the castle, the Hogwarts Rumor Mill had already done its job. All eyes immediately went to them as whispers began to fill the air. Buckbeak, picking up on the subject of the whispers, glared at each and every student, going so far as to growl at some as he realized the effect it was all having on his mate.

Harry, by now, should have been used to being stared at and whispered about, but this was somehow different. Somehow he felt even more exposed and shamed. Unconsciously, he tucked himself into Buckbeak's side, taking comfort from the earthy smell of Hagrid's coat mixed with the warmth of Buckbeak's now human body.

Upon arriving in front of the gargoyle centurion that guarded Dumbledore's office, Hagrid called out a random type of candy before leading the charge up the rising spiral staircase.

"Rubeus? Is something the matter?" Albus Dumbledore asked from behind his desk as he spotted Hagrid entering. It wasn't until the half-giant stepped aside to reveal a young man whom Dumbledore had never seen before and the unofficially dubbed 'Golden Trio' that the elder wizard began to understand why Hagrid was here. "Might I inquire as to who you are?" Albus asked with a kind, curious smile as his mind began to furiously puzzle out the identity of this individual.

"I am Buckbeak," Buckbeak answered. "Or, at least, that is the name Hagrid granted me."

"I see. Am I correct in assuming you are not a wizard?"

Buckbeak smirked. "Yes."

Albus's eyes twinkled in mirth as his mind puzzled even faster. "Am I correct in assuming you are not even human, despite all appearances to the contrary?"

Buckbeak's smirk grew. "Yes."

Albus was like a child at Christmas by this point. Standing before him was some kind of magical creature that could take on human form.

"He's a hippogriff, professor!" Ron exclaimed, having no patience for this. "Hagrid… _Professor_ Hagrid…was teaching us about hippogriffs, and Harry went up to one: Buckbeak! But before Harry could bow, Buckbeak bowed first!"

"I see," Albus said, now incredibly curious; his eyes zeroing in on the lack of space between Harry and Buckbeak, as well as the former hippogriff's, dare he say, protective grip around Harry.

"Harry is my mate," Buckbeak said with no small amount of pride.

At this, Albus's eyes widened in surprise. A magical creature transforming into a human and claiming to have another human as a mate! Imagine that! But of course, it was Harry James Potter. The lad had survived a Killing Curse casted by the most powerful dark wizard of the age while only a babe, faced off against said dark wizard again at age 11, summoned the sword of Gryffindor at age 12 and used it to vanquish a basilisk as old as Hogwarts itself! The boy was a champion for beating the odds.

"Indeed. I confess, in all my years I've never heard of something like this. It really is quite fantastic," Albus said with his grandfatherly smile.

At this, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Hagrid seemed to droop in disappointment.

"Hmph, well of course _you've_ never heard of it!" the portrait of former headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black said with a touch of disdain in his voice. "Only members of a Most Ancient and Noble house, who have never strayed from the pureblood traditions, would have heard of such things…and even then, only in legend."

Hearing this, everyone in the room, including the other portraits of former Hogwarts headmasters, perked up and looked to Phineas.

"Please, sir, tell us what you know," Hermione asked politely, eager to gain such apparently rare knowledge. Her two friends and their professor and headmaster looked equally eager as well.

Phineas's portrait narrowed its gaze at the muggleborn girl. Oh, yes, he took a vow as headmaster to treat _all_ students equally, but that didn't mean he had to like the filthy mudbloods that insisted on attending this prestigious school when they'd be better off in the world of their parents. But he wasn't a headmaster any longer, was he? "And what makes you think a silly little _muggleborn_ like you is worthy of such knowledge?" growled.

"Don't you dare take that tone with my friend, you tosser!" Ron barked. Bad enough they get this sort of talk from the Slytherins (Malfoy in particular) but from this bloody portrait of a long dead pureblood bastard?

Albus quickly stepped in before a fight could break out and said, "Gentlemen, please. Let us keep the peace, yes?" He then turned to Phineas with a reproachful look and said, "Phineas, please. Let us leave such philosophical arguments for another day."

The portrait of Phineas Nigellus Black harrumphed, but continued on nonetheless. "Legend says that since the very beginning exceptionally powerful witches and wizards were chosen by Magic itself to be mates of its creatures. Magic would grant unto those creatures the ability to become human, and unto those witches and wizards the ability to become whatever creature they were the mate of."

"…What?" Ron asked, not quite getting it.

"He means, Ronald, that Buckbeak has a human animagus form and Harry, apparently, will develop a hippogriff animagus form," Hermione clarified.

"Precisely, Ms. Granger," Albus praised with a smile. "Ten points to Gryffindor."

After absorbing all this, to say Harry felt a little light-headed was an understatement. Thankfully, Buckbeak was more than happy to provide him support. "So, what happens now?" Harry asked Buckbeak, as he looked the handsome man/creature.

Before Buckbeak could answer, Albus butted in with a stern, "Nothing, for now. You are only 13, Harry, and far too young to mate."

"You dare suggest I would mate with my Harry when I know he is not ready?!" Buckbeak growled, glaring daggers at the headmaster, who had the decency to back away and look contrite. "I will mate with my Harry when _he_ says so, and not a second sooner, understood?"

Albus Dumbledore had never looked so caught off guard in his life. He held up his hands in the universal sign of surrender and placatingly replied, "Of course, of course. I did not mean to insinuate anything inappropriate, I was simply looking out for the well-fare of one of my students."

"Take better care with your words," Buckbeak threatened, before looking down at Harry with an adoring smile and said, "To answer your question, for now I will remain at your side to guard you, protect you, and love you. And when you are ready to consummate our bond, I will shower you with pleasure. You will never again know a day without love."

Harry's face turned beet red and looked away, but it was plain as day that Harry did not object to such a promise.

This was certainly going to be an extraordinary year for Harry James Potter.


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow! I did not expect as many positive reviews as I got! Well, my muse returned to me and helped me write a second chapter. Just so you know, I have decided to make this a multi-chapter fic, but updates are likely to be irregular. Also, you may find that I'll glaze over some things and focus on others. This way I can get through the tedious bits and get to the good bits that are the real focus (in my opinion) of the story. Hope that doesn't bother y'all too much.**

 **WARNING: Snape is a major asshole in this chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

* * *

The days that followed were the most surreal of Harry's life. The very first night, alone, saw a unique change in Harry's new 'normal' when, upon entering the 3rd year boy's dorm, Harry, Ron, Neville, Seamus, and Dean found that the dorm had been expanded and a sort of nest consisting of sheets and blankets had been placed right next to Harry's four-poster. Buckbeak, unsurprisingly, had taken this in stride and had wasted no time in stripping off Hagrid's coat and Harry's robe, and then reverting to his hippogriff form before making himself at home in his new nest.

Then there was the matter of Harry's classes. Most teachers will willing to accept Buckbeak's presence so long as he kept quiet and did not disturb the class. No surprise, Snape was the only exception. The second Buckbeak made to enter his classroom, Snape swooped in, sneer in place, and docked 15 points from Gryffindor for attempting to smuggle a wild animal into his classroom. The only reason the potions professor survived this was because of Harry pleading with Buckbeak to spare him and to just sit outside the classroom door.

A week later, on Thursday, September 9th, Harry excitedly entered the Defense Against The Dark Arts classroom. This was to be their first lesson with Professor Lupin, and everyone was eager to see how he'd stack against Quirell and Lockhart. As Harry took his seat, he couldn't help the small smile as, once more, Buckbeak silently handed him his text book. From day one Buckbeak had insisted on carrying Harry's books and made a habit of pulling the required text from the satchel he carried and placing it before Harry…apparently a show of Buckbeak's ability to provide for his mate, according to Hagrid.

Actually, Buckbeak had taken on a more domesticated appearance since that first day. McGonagal had insisted that if Buckbeak were to remain at Harry's side in human form he would have to be properly attired. And so, during the first weekend of the school year, McGonagal had escorted both Buckbeak and Harry (because the ridiculous creature, as McGonagal had referred to Buckbeak with the barest hint of a wry smile, refused to go anywhere without his mate) to the neighboring village of Hogsmeade where a satellite shop of Madam Malkin's Robes could be found. Buckbeak was then fitted for a set of plain robes similar in style to Hogwarts student robes (minus any House-defining colors or even the Hogwarts seal) but everyday enough to be confused for standard business-casual attire. Upon returning to Hogwarts, Profressor Flitwick took pride in personally charming each article of clothing to shift with Buckbeak whenever he reverted to his natural hippogriff form.

Buckbeak had even begun to answer to the name Bucky Beak; a humanized form of his name.

"Does something amuse you, Harry?" Bucky asked, effectively pulling Harry out of his trip down memory lane.

Harry shook the cobwebs from his head and remembered where he was. "Sorry, just lost in thought," Harry replied with a sheepish smile.

Any further words from Bucky were stopped by the appearance of Professor Lupin. After placing his tatty briefcase on his desk, he called for the class to put away their books, pull out their wands, and follow him. This caused a few murmurs of excitement to spread amongst the classroom.

Lupin lead them through the maze of Hogwart's corridors and, after a brief and comical interaction with peeves involving a wad of gum shooting into the poltergeist's nose, to the staffroom.

Upon entering all eyes fell to Professor Snape who was getting up out of an armchair. "Take care, Lupin, this class contains Neville Longbottom. I would advise you not to entrust him with anything difficult. Not unless Miss Granger is hissing instructions in his ear," the dour man said before glancing at Harry and adding with a sneer, "And then of course there's Mr. Potter's _pet_ that plays at being human. I would hate to hear that you had to pull the beast off of the boy should it decide to introduce him to the concept of _bestiality_."

At this, many of the Slytherins began to snicker cruelly while every single Gryffindor worked together to hold Buckbeak back.

Lupin, bless the man, merely smiled and replied, "I was hoping that Neville would assist me with the first stage of the operation, and I am sure he will perform admirably in my class. As for that other thing, you really should take care, Severus. It isn't wise to insult a hippogriff. I suspect it is only by the nobility and chivalry inherent in their house that my Gryffindor students even now keep Mr. Beak at bay."

Snape frowned as he realized this. He had to save face, though, so he said as he departed, "I doubt it could ever truly harm me so long as Potter is around to tug at its leash."

"Pray, then, that you never find me without my mate, dungeon bat," Bucky growled menacingly at the now closed door.

Seeing the need to redirect attention, Lupin clapped his hands once and moved to stand next to a nearby wardrobe, which gave a sudden shudder. The class proceeded with Lupin teaching them about boggarts: shape-shifters that lived in dark, enclosed spaces, and took the form of whatever frightened someone the most. A witch or wizard's only defense was laughter, and to that end there was the spell ' _Riddikulus_ '. This spell, Lupin explained, forced a boggart to take a form that the caster found amusing, so long as they focused on that image. He then had the students' line up and, one at a time, face-off with the boggart and use the spell against it. One-by-one the boggart was subjected to grave humiliation as it was forced to be Snape wearing a horrendous dress and vulture-hat, a mummy tripping on its own bandages, a banshee with laryngitis, and many other amusing things.

Finally it was Harry's turn, and he eagerly stepped forward. Out of the corner of his eye, though he saw Lupin try to intercept the boggart but was stopped by Bucky, who likely was instinctively protecting his mate from a perceived threat. Unfortunately, this resulted in the 'birth' of a dementor in the middle of the staffroom, to the horror of all present.

Harry didn't notice, though. Harry was too busy focusing on the faint voice of a woman crying out, "No, not Harry! Don't take Harry!" just before he fell into darkness.

Harry woke to find himself lying in the arms and lap of a very distressed Bucky who, himself, was lying in one of the beds of the Hospital Wing. Ron, Hermione, and Lupin were on either side of him, their expressions brightening as they realized he was coming to.

"Harry! Are you alright?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah, mate, that was quite the fall. Hard to miss the thunk of your head hitting the floor," Ron added, grunting in pain as Hermione elbowed him.

Bucky simply whined as he combed his fingers lightly through Harry's hair. Harry couldn't help but lean into the touch, and blushed when he received a knowing grin from Lupin.

"I must apologize, Harry," Lupin said. "I was trying to get between you and the boggart; I was afraid it might turn into a Voldemort returned to full strength. And given what effect the boggart-dementor had, you can only imagine how much worse the former would be. I would seem, however, I forgot to bow to your guardian."

"It was instinct," Bucky replied.

"Indeed," Lupin said wryly before looking at Harry and frowning.

"Why do the dementors affect me so much?" Harry asked. "Everytime they're around, before I faint, I hear something: a woman…screaming."

Lupin sighed, looking even more ragged than usual. "Dementors force us to relive our very worst memories. Our pain becomes their power. They feed on every good feeling, every happy memory, until the person is left with absolutely nothing but their worst experiences." Lupin then smiled consolingly as he added, "You are not weak, Harry. The dementors affect you most of all because there are true horrors in your past. Horrors your classmates can scarcely imagine. You've nothing to be ashamed of."

"Can a wizard defend themselves from a dementor?" Bucky asked, looking intently at Lupin.

"Of course!" Hermione exclaimed. "That spell you used on the train, professor, what was that?"

Lupin nodded his head in affirmation. "The Patronus Charm. It acts as a shield from dementors, but it is a very advanced spell."

Harry perked up at this. "Can you teach me, professor? Please?"

"Are you sure, Harry? It will not be easy, and it will take time," Lupin replied, now very serious.

"I'll do whatever it takes, professor," Harry answered resolutely.

"Very well, then. I'll need some time to set up for our lessons. I'll send you an owl with a date, time and location when I'm ready." And with that, Lupin left the Hospital Wing.

As it turned out, it took Lupin two weeks to get everything set for their first Patronus lesson. At eight o'clock that evening, Harry and Bucky left Gryffindor Tower for the History of Magic classroom, as per Remus's instructions. During those past two weeks, Harry had noticed Bucky acting strangely around Ron. It wasn't all the time, of course, just whenever Ron was holding Scabbers and comforting him. The poor rat was looking gravely ill, more so then when Harry had last seen him on the train to Hogwarts. Ron kept insisting that it was because of Crookshanks, but Harry felt it was more likely due to the fact that the rat was at least 12 years old; far older than any common rat.

Harry and Bucky were the first to arrive, with Lupin arriving five minutes later carrying a large packing case, which he heaved onto Professor Binn's desk.

"What's that?" asked Harry.

"Another boggart," Lupin answered. "I've been combing the castle every night since you requested these lessons and I managed to find this one lurking inside Mr. Filch's filing cabinet. It's the nearest we'll get to a real dementor; the boggart will turn into a dementor when it sees you and then you'll be able to practice on it."

"And when you're not using it?" Bucky asked with a raised brow.

Lupin smiled kindly and answered, "I have a rather nice cupboard under my desk it should like."

"Okay…let's get started," Harry announced, trying to sound as if he weren't apprehensive at all; this was his idea, and he feared that if Professor Lupin thought for a second Harry wasn't 100% committed he'd put a stop to it immediately.

Lupin nodded in agreement and ushered Harry into position, with Bucky behind him and grasping Harry's shoulder, as though to provide silent support. Taking out his wand, Lupin said, "As you'll recall, the spell I'm going to try to teach you is called the Patronus Charm. It conjures a Patronus, which is a kind of anti-dementor – a guardian that acts as a shield between you and the dementor."

At this, Harry's mind conjured an image of a ghostly Buckbeak in his hippogriff form charging at a dementor and tearing into it with his talons. The barest of blushes graced his cheeks at the thought.

"The Patronus," Lupin continued, unaware of Harry's thoughts, "is a kind of positive force, a projection of the very things that the dementor feeds upon – hope, happiness, the desire to survive – but it cannot feel despair, as real humans can, so the dementors can't hurt it. But I must warn you, Harry that the charm might be too advanced for you. Many qualified wizards have difficulty with it."

"What does a Patronus look like?" Harry asked curiously.

"Each one is unique to the wizard who conjures it."

"And how do you conjure it?"

"With an incantation, which will work only if you are concentrating with all your might on a single on a single, very happy memory."

This, Harry decided, would be difficult. He didn't have many happy memories given his childhood. Therefore, it would have to be something that had happened at Hogwarts. Finally, he settled on his first time riding a broomstick.

"Okay, I think I've got one," he said.

"The incantation is this: _Expecto Patronum_ ," Lupin instructed.

Harry whispered the words to himself a few times before applying the memory. Concentrating on the moment he raced to meet Malfoy in the air and rescue Neville's remembrall. The thrill of being in the air, the smug satisfaction of Malfoy looking surprised and uncertain at Harry's apparent natural skill, and the excitement at finally finding something he was good at.

" _Expecto patronum_. _Expecto Patronum_. _Expecto Patronum_."

Harry stumbled back a bit into Bucky when a silvery wisp rushed out of his wand.

"Did you see that?!" Harry crowed excitedly. "Something happened!"

Bucky chuckled; the vibrations in his torso making Harry feel strangely light-headed and super aware of how close they were. "Knew you could do it," the human-hippogriff praised.

"Indeed. Very good," Lupin said. "Now, ready for the boggart?"

Harry nodded his head in affirmation.

Lupin stepped to the side and waved his wand at the packing case, silently opening it. The lid jumped open and out flew a dementor. Instantly, the room dropped in temperature and all the candles that once lit the room went out. And though Harry tried to concentrate on the memory and speak the words, his heart was not completely in it. For there had been but the tiniest part of him that had grown excited at hearing his mother's voice again. Oh, it would be dreadful to only hear her screaming and crying, but it was still her voice, and that was all that mattered.

Harry never even noticed Bucky grabbing him to keep him from falling as he started to black out.

"Harry!"

Harry jerked back to life and realized he was lying with his head in Bucky's lap with Professor Lupin at his side.

"Sorry," Harry said, sheepishly. A part of him was alarmed at how comfortable and save he felt lying in Bucky's lap, but he ignored it in favor of paying attention to Professor Lupin.

"Are you all right?" Lupin asked.

"Yes, sir." With Bucky's help, Harry sat up before taking the piece of chocolate Lupin offered and nibbling on it.

Once Harry had had his fill, he stood back up and demanded another shot. Lupin wasn't sure, but he couldn't deny Harry. And so they tried once more, with Harry focusing on the memory of winning the house cup for Gryffindor his first year. And once more, Harry collapsed. Only this time, he heard his father's voice too.

"Harry," Lupin begged, "perhaps we should leave it here for tonight. This charm is ridiculously advanced…I shouldn't have suggested putting you through this…"

"No!" Harry cried. "I'll have one more go! I'm not thinking of happy enough things, that's what it is. Hang on."

Seeing his mate struggle, Bucky wrapped his arms around Harry. Over the course of the weeks they'd been getting to know each other, Bucky had slowly learned about Harry's life. His childhood spent with unloving relatives, and the many dangers he'd faced during his first two years at Hogwarts. Bucky was so proud of Harry and his strength. But despite all that, Harry was still so fragile and greatly rejoiced in any simply touch.

Lupin watched in amusement as Harry seemed to melt into the embrace, his face reddening ever so slightly. If James and Lily were here he could only imagine their reactions. Lily would be smiling kindly while simultaneously plotting Bucky's demise should he do something unbecoming, and James would be having a fit about how his precious little boy was being corrupted.

"Professor…I think I'm ready now," Harry said bashfully, still in the arms of his mate. Bucky was now nuzzling Harry's neck. Somehow, though, the scene didn't seem erotic. It was purely affectionate and comforting…safe.

And so Lupin released the boggart for a third time.

" _Expecto Patronum_." Harry cried out, concentrating on the memory of the first time Bucky had held him like this…the first time they met. " _Expecto Patronum_!" he tried again; a small silvery wisp beginning to form at his wand tip. " _EXPECTO PATRONUM_!"

A huge, silvery shadow burst forth from Harry's wand, forming a near solid barrier between him and the dementor. It was holding the dementor at bay, but it was only doing that, and Harry wasn't sure for how much longer he could keep this up.

" _Riddikulus_!" Lupin bellowed as he sprang forth.

Before Harry's legs could truly give out, Bucky quickly picked him up bridal style and held him, roaring out praises of Harry's might and will, and punctuating each one with a kiss to each of Harry's cheeks.

This would certainly make for an excellent Patronus memory, Harry thought to himself bashfully.


	3. Chapter 3

**I owe you all an apology for taking so long with this. I lost my muse, my motivation, and just got caught up in various TV Shows and video games.**

 **I'm really gonna try to focus more on this, so please keep sending those positive reviews and love!**

* * *

Harry was jostled awake by a pair of hands shaking him and a voice calling his name. Opening his eyes, Harry took in the blurry image of Ron. His best mate was close enough that even with Harry's terrible eye-sight he could still see that Ron was pale and worried.

"Wa's goin' on?" Harry asked sleepily.

"Harry, mate, Professor McGonagal is downstairs in the common room. She wants to see you now. Says it's urgent," Ron explained.

Harry bolted up at of bed at that. It was positively unheard of for a Head of House to appear in their House's common room in the middle of the night to see a student. Whatever was going on couldn't be good.

After pulling on a bathrobe and a pair of slippers, Harry followed Ron downstairs to the common room. If Ron's earlier appearance and explanation as to why he should wake up at nearly two in the morning had agitated Harry, seeing the expression on his Head of House's face brought Harry a sense of doom that, until now, only the dementors had brought him.

The normally proud Scottish woman was wrapped up in a forest green tweed bathrobe. Her hair was still in its usual bun, however it wasn't nearly as tight and controlled as it usually was; stray hairs were poking out everywhere. And for an elder witch who lived and taught at a school filled with ghosts, McGonagal looked like she had well and truly seen a ghost.

"Thank you, Mr. Weasley," the Gryffindor Head of House said, her voice a little shaken. "Please see yourself back to bed. I will take it from here."

"Yes, ma'am," Ron answered, giving Harry a look before heading back to the 3rd year boy's dorm.

At the sound of the dorm's door being shut closed, McGonagal turned to Harry and said, "Follow me, Mr. Potter.

McGonagal lead Harry out of the Gryffindor common room and down to the third floor. Harry caught on to where they were heading long before he saw the gargoyle statue sitting so innocently in the middle of a wall.

"Ice mice," McGonagal intoned, causing the gargoyle statue to step aside, revealing the spiral staircase leading up to the Headmaster's Office.

Harry quickly ascended the steps and made to knock on the door, but stopped as her heard Dumbledore's voice from just beyond it granting him entrance.

Inside, he found a rather weary and shaken Albus Dumbledore, leaning against the mantle of his fireplace, as well as Buckbeak (in his hippogriff form), lying on a rug in front of the fireplace. As soon as he saw Harry, though, he stood up and cantered over to Harry and began to nuzzle him.

Harry couldn't help but smile at the gesture and placed a kiss on the top of Buckbeak's head.

"Harry," Dumbledore said, his voice a haunted whisper, "please..take a seat."

 _ **\- HARRY / BUCKBEAK -**_

 _ **SIRIUS BLACK PROVED INNOCENT!**_

 _ **POTTERS' TRUE BETRAYER REVEALED!**_

 _Late last night, an emergency session of the Wizengamot was called to order after the body of Peter Pettigrew was delivered, alive no less, to Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement._

 _During the session, Pettigrew was questioned while under the effects of veritaserum about the events of October 31_ _st_ _, 1981 and the days that followed before his disappearance. As most may recall, it was believed that infamous mass murderer Sirius Black had informed He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named of the location of James and Lily Potter, leading to their deaths, and then confronted Peter Pettigrew before killing him and several nearby Muggles._

 _As it turns out, these events couldn't be further from the truth!_

 _For it was, in fact, Pettigrew who betrayed the Potters! And when Black attempted to confront Pettigrew, it was Pettigrew who killed all the Muggles before cutting off his finger and transforming into his unregistered animagus form (a rat)!_

 _(For more on the Animagus Registry and DMLE concerns, turn to page 5)_

 _To add insult to injury, the Aurors leading the investigation discovered that Black never received a trial for any of his conceived crimes. Attempting to save face, the Minister ordered an immediate release of Black for the purpose of receiving the trial he was denied for the last twelves years._

 _Under veritaserum, Black was able to corroborate Pettigrew's story, detailing how he had been the Potters' secret keeper at first, but then convinced his friend James to switch to Pettigrew, as Black was the obvious choice. He then went on to explain that his laughter upon capture was the result of momentary madness as he "watched [his] entire world, everything [he] knew to be true and real, shatter like glass."_

 _At the conclusion of the session, Pettigrew was sentenced to the Dementor's Kiss, to be performed as soon as possible, and Black was cleared of all charges, and the standard fine for being an unregistered animagus himself was waived. Black was also granted custody of his godson, Harry James Potter, on the condition that he first complete a six month Mind Healing program at Saint Mungo's. With startling resolve, Black agreed to the condition._

 _All of us here at the Daily Prophet wish Lord Black a speedy recovery, and welcome home._

 _ **\- HARRY / BUCKBEAK -**_

The Great Hall was filled with a cacophony of sounds that morning as students and professors alike discussed the headline of the Daily Prophet. There were those who believed this was some kind of trick, and that Black had more than likely bribed the Minister with unfathomable riches (after all, the Blacks had once been one of the most prominent Pureblood families in the UK). And there were those who simply took the matter at face value and believed it. But the one thing most everyone could agree on was how disconcerting it was that Black had gone so long without a proper trial. For truly, there is nothing quite so bone-chilling as realizing that in times of war, civil rights can be so easily swept aside so as to provide the appearance of a swift and decisive government.

Eventually, eyes began to dart around, looking for the Boy Who Lived, curious to see how he might react to the article. However, the boy wasn't in the Great Hall. He was, in fact, curled up next to Buckbeak in his nest in the boy's dorm in Gryffindor Tower, sleeping off the torrent of emotions he'd experienced only hours earlier.

"So, what's my little Prongslet like?" Sirius asked Remus.

Remus had excused himself that day to visit his old friend and former lover. When he'd first arrived at St. Mungo's, Sirius had been sound asleep. Remus chose to sit next to the man he'd once thought of starting a life with and wait for him to wake. Once Sirius had woken, there had been a round of tears, apologies, and kisses between the two before questions began flying from Sirius's mouth about the last decade and a half.

"He has James's unruly hair, his grandmother's, Dorea's, cheekbones, his grandfather's, Charlus's chin, and Lily's eyes," Remus answered with a smile.

Sirius barked out a laugh. "No doubt he's got a number birds and blokes pining for him, then!"

Remus snorted in amusement. "Yes. About that? You may want to brace yourself for this."

Sirius raised a single brow in curiosity.

 _ **\- HARRY / BUCKBEAK -**_

Faster than anyone could have imagined, the month of October began with a surprisingly gorgeous Saturday morning. While most of the students were eager to while the day away doing absolutely nothing, Harry was a bundle of nerves as he nibbled at his toast.

"You've nothing to fear. I will be with you the entire time," Bucky whispered, placing a comforting kiss on Harry's temple.

Today was the day that Harry would be visiting his godfather for the first time. Remus had approached him a few days after the Daily Prophets article. Remus had already visited Sirius to check up on him and found his present status quite promising. Sirius had been asking, _begging_ , to see his godson, to apologize for being so hot-headed and blinded by rage that he would just shirk his duties and seek out vengeance instead, and to get to know the young man he should have raised.

"It's not so much that I'm afraid of _him_. It's that…what if he doesn't _like_ me?" Harry replied.

Bucky raised a brow and answered, "Then he's a fool and you needn't have anything to do with him! Honestly, how anyone could not like you is beyond me."

Harry grinned as he said self-deprecatingly, "Tell that to Malfoy. He hates my guts."

Bucky grinned mischievously as he said, "Oh, do not be so sure."

Harry starred at Bucky, mouth agape, trying to determine if the Hippogriff-turned-human was insinuating what he thought he was insinuating.

After a moment, Bucky barked out a laugh, unable to help himself.

Harry pouted and whacked Bucky on the shoulder with little strength: just enough to sting. "You're making fun of me!" he whined.

"Oh, perish the thought! I'd be far too frightened to tease a wizard!" Bucky replied.

Harry stuck out his tongue in response.

After they'd finally finished breakfast, they met Remus by the Entrance Hall. Remus then lead them outside and down the path to the main gate at the edge of Hogwarts's wards.

"Hogwarts is protected by a series of wards that keep individuals from apparating or port-keying in or out of the area, as well as anti-besiegement wards to protect the grounds from attack," Remus explained in his warm and eager teaching voice.

"So Hagrid was right when he said there was no safer place than Gringotts, except for Hogwarts," Harry said in wonder.

"Exactly! Now, take hold of the port-key!" Remus said, pulling out a sun hat from within his tattered robes.

Moments later, Harry felt that bizarre sensation of a hook grabbing him by his navel and tugging him upward. The world around him whizzed and whipped about for a few seconds before he crashed down in an empty room.

The room, as it turned out, was a sort of port-key receiving room, one of a series, within the walls of St. Mungo's. Harry and Bucky followed Remus as he lead them through a series of corridors that lead to a massive atrium. There, at the front desk, all three signed in before being directed to Sirius's room. Harry took a deep breath before grasping the door handle, turning it, and pushing the door open.

The room was done in an off-white color, heading to an egg-yolk yellow, blending a sense of sterility with a sense of warmth. There were comfy looking chairs on either side of the bed, upon which sat a man who looked as though he'd been through the ringer but was now on the mend. He appeared freshly shaved, showing skin that was re-gaining its former color. It was stretched taut across bone, giving a gaunt look, but that was clearly temporary given how ferociously he was going at his egg sandwich.

Remus cleared his throat loudly, shocking Sirius out of his food trance.

Swallowing his mouthful as quickly as he could, Sirius looked straight at Harry. Not at his scar, but at _him_.

"Harry."


End file.
